Do You Tell People You Have Ptsd?

[shimmerz]

I made the mistake once with dire consequences. Never again will I tell anyone.

 

[Gadgie]

The only time I tell anyone, is if I'm trying to speak to them, and I get that anxiety attack, which makes me stutter, feel awkward and want to run away.

Yet, I know I have to stay there, as I'm in the process of buying something, or checking out at a supermarket. For example, I was a store today buying some Bluetooth speakers today, and I had to stay and give some details.

Luckily, by the time that had kicked in, we were at a table away in a corner of the store, and the bloke seemed to understand.

Yet, I wouldn't have said anything, if he hadn't noticed my symptoms?

 

[Sideways]

@shimmerz
Not after all the gory detail, but what was it about the disclosure that made it a disaster? Did the person just not understand what ptsd was? Did they think you were using unreasonable excuses?

Curious to know what's going on when disclosure doesn't end with hugss, rainbows & bunny rabbits...

 

[shimmerz]

doesn't end with hugss, rainbows & bunny rabbits...

For me it did not. Adult children and friends of more than a quarter century each... all gone. No more. It wasn't bad enough that I was living a holy living hell.... add betrayal of so many layers heaped on top of me while this stuff was happening?

Never again. The whole you are mentally ill, the whole concept of which I have problems with, had friends, family who once respected me absolutely treat me like garbage. Sub human. I don't know about you guys but I am fighting for my sense of humanity. I will NEVER give people fodder for the mentally ill attitude again.

/steps down from rant box.

 

[seedling]

I told my last boss that I was seeing someone for my trauma (which was a situation he knew about, knew what happened). I didn't say I had PTSD (thank goodness in that situation). For the next 4 months or so he would pop out a "crazy" joke every now and then. He couldn't handle knowing.
Fortunately I could and I just laughed along like it meant nothing to me. Which at that point, and from him, it didn't. I just thought that I had told someone who didn't know how to deal with a seemingly functional, normal person with mental health issues.

I'm not sure you should disclose anything right now, in this juncture with the Board changes. You could say you'd like to help, are most comfortable doing that from home, online. If it comes to more involvement after this settles down you could mention that you are not comfortable with groups of people, like at the meetings. I wouldn't disclose the whole diagnosis until you've perhaps worked with each other for a longer amount of time.

 

[hodge]

I feel so badly for those of you who trusted someone with this info and they turned on you.

I've been lucky with people in my life. Well, except for the abuse years earlier. I even told my mom, and I could tell she felt kind of guilty because she tried to talk me out of it. Lol. Now she accepts it. I think.

I live in a tiny town and have posted things on FB about having PTSD. Not very often, but a few times. I've gotten many likes and support. I think it's because I didn't have it when I came here and people got to know and like me pre-PTSD for several years. If I were in a new place and didn't know anyone, I probably wouldn't disclose.

I've felt able to do it in my situation and I gambled right, thankfully. And I really had to tell my closest friends because otherwise I couldn't explain why I am so distant sometimes. It's so damn hard to try to be normal, because I don't want to dump on my friends. With respect to that, it's so nice to have this place where I don't have to explain myself.

Oh, yeah, why did I do it? Because I don't want everyone to think that everyone with PTSD is a violent maniac. I believe the vast majority of us are not. I'm certainly not. I think we all have much more to fear from narcissists and sociopaths than PTSDers.

 

[Ronin]

I'm not interested in sympathy or pity fests, getting help gets obstructed by sharing instead of eased up, suppositions of violence in clueless & naive context only piss me off for multitude intellectual reasons that have a few to do with my PTSD and people close to me emotionally already know / struggle with the same shit daily, so there's no point in way much talk.

 

[seedling]

I would like to tell (more) people I have PTSD but it's still too hard to do.
I feel self-conscious when I mention it at any time. I think, then, others get uncomfortable with it because I am.

 

[BlueOrange]

I've told a lot of people. It works out well most of the time, but there are downsides - my diagnosis becomes the default explanation for any kind of difficulty, and that can undermine professional relationships. I tell people less often than I used to - I don't have to push past fear to do it anymore, and that makes it easier to make conscious choices about disclosure.

 

[Lionheart]

I have told lots of people and most of the time it works out okay, but what I don't like is people, (family), telling my story to others who don't know or understand trauma-related injuries....it is my right to tell or not tell and it should not be the default explanation for all of my difficulties. There are other reasons that I struggle, namely chronic physical illnesses, and those are things I don't wish to share with everyone!!!

However I choose to share about being abused as a child because how else are people supposed to learn that not everyone who has been abused becomes an abuser???

 

[hotrod351]

no way, hey im nuts. dont think that would go over to well. beside sounds like using a excuse for your actions. might tell a friend, but thats it. nothing to be proud of, or ashamed of, but best kept to yourself.

 

[Hush92]

I've been getting involved in a local Neighborhood Assoc since we have been having a lot of burgl...

I think it is a good idea to explain your situation in this case. I myself don't really talk about what I experience except with....one of my friends currently. (And my therapist but that doesn't count) I may expand that to tell more of my friends. I am worried it would make people see me differently if I openly shared it, and my parents would not approve of that anyways. (Supportive, right? -.-) However it does lead to awkward situations like one of my friends always joking "Wow this class gave me PTSD, I tried to study and got PTSD, etc."